The end of another year

Christmas and New Years Eve 2011 leapt on me with a bit of a surprise. I have felt so busy this year, even though I got so much more accomplished in 2010. Here is a very brief summary of my 2011:
Mieke aced grade 2. Quinn mastered riding a bicycle. Matt went back to working 6 days a week. I got myself a job at Bunnings. We accomplished nothing around the house. We had two brief holidays with family. We threw around the idea of me going back to work full time. The dog stopped chewing things he's not supposed to. The cat continues to walk about on the bench like it's his God-given right. Quinn perserveres with his fondness for Abba and AC/DC and Justin Bieber lyrics and a love of all things superhero. Mieke remains true to the stereotypes of what 8 year old girls are into, adding to that a natural skill for and commitment to karate.

Happy new year to everyone and may you all enjoy a healthy and happy 2012. Over and out.

The dreariness of it all

Absurd really. But what's the alternative?

Christmas 2011

The weather for Christmas day this year was strange and a just a tad eery: hot and humid with brief flashes of sun alternating with brief showers, ending the day with a spectacular lightning show and an hour long torrential downpour that included hail the size of large marbles.

Christmas often brings out the best in people, but it can also increase stress and anxiety and tension between relatives. Spending the day with Matt's family was something I used to feel quite apprehensive about (and was always exhausted upon leaving). 14 years later and I look forward to it, getting lost in the hustle and bustle, enjoying a glass of wine, watching my children play with their cousins, pull the bons bons and pick at their food (before the inevitable unravel of emotion at the end of a long lead up after too much food/sugar/stimulation and not anywhere near enough sleep). I have learned (sometimes the hard way) not to take anything too seriously. But for others the tensions run deeper, with a history I do not share and cannot understand. Even though I have been well accepted into the family I will always remain somewhat of an outsider and their relationships I think will always be mysterious. The interactions of those involved in my Christmas 2011 were a little like the weather of the day. Unpredictable, fraught, angry, ambivalent, but warm nonetheless. There was laughter, tears, love. Love. Love. And wine. There is always wine.